


the last train home

by brella



Category: Hyouka & Kotenbu Series
Genre: Eavesdropping, Friendship, Future Fic, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-21
Updated: 2017-11-21
Packaged: 2019-02-05 03:38:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,956
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12786141
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brella/pseuds/brella
Summary: In the early autumn of their senior year, Chitanda names Satoshi Vice President of the Classics Literature Club.





	the last train home

**Author's Note:**

  * For [petaldancing](https://archiveofourown.org/users/petaldancing/gifts).



> For Jen, for the "things you said" meme: things you said when you thought I was asleep.

In the early autumn of their senior year, Chitanda names Satoshi Vice President of the Classics Literature Club. It's a decision that both delights and confounds him, for it is a position he'd been almost certain would go to Houtarou, had it needed to go to anyone at all; not to mention the fact that she'd neglected to discuss it with him even a little bit, prior to the walk they make to the faculty office to submit the form to their advisor.

He makes a jocular comment to the effect of "had to fill out the names on the form somehow, right?" and forgets about it. As with most things, it isn't really worth dwelling on. Chitanda is such a powerhouse that he expects the duties of his newfound station will amount to little more than backing her up when she's trying to get Houtarou to do something; and, more or less, they do—he has a grand old time pulling the "sorry, Houtarou, but I _do_ outrank you" card whenever he can and subsequently marvelling at the impressive glower Houtarou will take the energy to assemble just for him—until December.

It's snowing heavily outside, a thick white noise against the walls, when they all move to set their bags on the center table and Chitanda opens a note from their advisor. Satoshi has scarcely gotten his scarf off when she lets out a squeal of excitement and briefly bounces on her heels, startling Houtarou into dropping his books with a clatter.

It's a display uncharacteristic of her typical manners, so Satoshi's interest is already piqued. Thankfully, he need not be curious long; Chitanda composes herself, apologizes for the outburst, and announces that they have been approved to attend a conference for all Classics Literature Clubs in Japan, honoring their tradition, to be held in Kyoto at the month's end. Classics Clubs from every prefecture will be in attendance for a weekend of literary discussion and intellectual stimulation, as well as a forum on how to ensure the preservation of Classics Clubs, which have been declining in popularity among students in recent years.

The only small issue, Chitanda tells them with a guilty look, is that the invitation only extends to the President and Vice President of each club. Profusely, she apologizes to Mayaka and Houtarou, bowing almost all the way to her knees.

Houtarou could not be more clearly unbothered, thumbing through a book on the history of poisons he’s been reading since Tuesday. Mayaka tries valiantly to pretend that she’s saddened she can’t join them, but Satoshi knows her well enough to see that it’s mostly for Chitanda’s benefit.

Chitanda apologizes to him, too, for sending an inquiry to the Board of Directors without consulting him first. Satoshi can’t really bring himself to mind. Number one, it’s Chitanda, and it can be difficult to mind anything when it comes to her, though he’s certainly tried. Number two, it sounds plenty interesting; after all, the history of the Classics Club at Kamiyama High is storied enough, so who knows what the other schools have got in their annals—and number three, quite possibly the most intriguing reason of all, if he’s being honest with himself (which is a rare feat, he’ll admit): it will give him the chance to observe the workings of Chitanda Eru independent of Houtarou’s sphere of influence. Truthfully, they’ve never actually spent any time alone together short of brief conversations in the club room about exam prep and the weather while waiting for Houtarou and Mayaka to arrive.

It’s been some time since he called himself a database, but there are certain brass tacks you’re only given so many chances to acquire. Regardless of the outcome, it’s sure to be enlightening. So he smiles with shut eyes at Chitanda, flashes a thumbs-up, and assures her that he couldn’t be more excited.

That earns him an especially dazzling smile, leaving him illuminated in violent delight and suddenly more understanding of Houtarou’s ever-waning ability to deny her.

 

* * *

 

 

They travel to Kyoto by bus and return the same way. The ride is long, but Satoshi doesn’t mind; on the way there, he and Chitanda play karuta (she had brought her travel deck) and chat about literature and he regales her with facts about Japan’s volcanoes, which she returns enthusiastically with a rundown of _ee ja nai ka_ as it related to the deterioration of the Tokugawa shogunate.

It’s truly one of the most illuminating conversations Satoshi has ever had, rich with new data to commit to memory. But he doesn’t know how to tell her so without sounding like a weirdo, so he doesn’t.

The conference is a whirlwind of activity, socializing, note-taking, and making sure Chitanda doesn’t spirit away any of the young students starting their school’s first Classics Club. Satoshi makes fast friends with a boy from Kashiwazaki named Daisuke; Chitanda takes a pair of girls from Sapporo under her wing with alacrity—and they couldn’t be more pleased about it, from Satoshi’s observations.

When the time comes to return home, Satoshi is practically dead on his feet, a sensation with which he is sorely unfamiliar. He expects Chitanda is tired, too, though she’s much better at hiding it; however, the lack of neatness to the bun she had haphazardly put a huge scrunchie around—and the distinctly pajama-esque look to the t-shirt she has on under her coat—betray her.

They board the bus and Satoshi immediately slouches into his seat to nap, mumbling an apology to Chitanda for being rude, but she assures him firmly that she doesn’t mind.

He drifts in and out of sleep for a time, coming to when they’re about an hour out going by the peek he takes at his watch, just in time to hear Chitanda’s phone buzz in her pocket.

“Hello?” she all but whispers, clearly trying to keep her voice down so as not to wake him. It’s a bit sweet. “Oh, Mayaka-san! Hello! How are you?”

Satoshi doesn’t notice immediately that his body had tensed at the mention of Mayaka’s name, as though preparing to yank the phone from Chitanda’s hands and have Mayaka all to himself. He wills himself to relax, grateful then that Chitanda has never been as observant as Houtarou; if she were, he’d almost definitely have been caught right then and there.

“Yes, we boarded the bus just fine,” Chitanda is saying cheerfully, still in that soft and carefully restrained voice, which would almost certainly be making him sleepy were she not talking to someone more interesting than dreams. “Yes. Yes! We’re still a good three hours away. Hm? Oh, Fukube-san?”

Damn it, Satoshi’s heart has leaped into overdrive again, and he only hopes that its eager rhythm doesn’t give him away—to him, it sounds thunderous. He keeps his eyes closed, breathing periodically through his nose, and listens.

“He’s asleep,” Chitanda says. “Hm? What? Of course I’m sure!”

Satoshi stifles a laugh. Leave it to Mayaka to call his bluff even a hundred miles away.

“It’s been lovely,” Chitanda is saying when he manages to compose himself. “Really, it has! We met a lot of wonderful people, Mayaka-san; I have so many new ideas! We’ll have lots of work to do when I get back!”

There’s a pause, and then she muffles a giggle.

“Was that Oreki-san I just heard? Tell him to cheer up! It’s fun work! Oh, don’t—don’t put me on speaker! _Mayaka-san_... ah! H-Hello, Oreki-san! Y-Yes, we’re both fine; thank you!”

Satoshi is finding it increasingly difficult to keep from smiling. Chitanda’s voice has changed completely, into something bashful and giddy, and he knows Houtarou is on the other end of it with a subtle color in his cheeks, gazing pensively at the floor. What a pair they make, always dancing so carefully around each other, always just close enough to touch. He’ll have to tease Houtarou heartily about it on Monday.

“Yes. Yes, the hotel was just fine. Relaxing, yes. H-How have things been there while we’ve been away?” She hums attentively at irregular intervals for about half a minute, no doubt getting all the updates from Mayaka. “Come again? Oh—oh, good-bye, Oreki-san—“ There’s another brief silence, and then, calmly, she asks, “Mayaka-san... what was that all about?”

Satoshi holds his breath without noticing, intrigued into silence.

“Oh!” Chitanda gasps, as though realizing something very obvious. “Oh, Mayaka-san! Don’t be silly. He misses you very much.”

It is now taking everything Satoshi has not to leap up and take the phone from her, but at this point, if he were to do so, it would reveal that he had been eavesdropping, which seems much more uncouth a thing to do in front of Chitanda than the alternative. Still, he clenches his teeth minutely, willing Mayaka to hear him through the phone: _of course I miss you; I stared at the stars for an hour last night wondering if you could see them; I’ve seen at least ten things I’ve wanted to tell you about; I have a list for when I come home to you_ —and when had Mayaka become home?

This really is something else, this thing in his chest; this marvelous, forlorn feeling. He doubts he’ll ever get back to sleep now.

“Yes,” Chitanda is saying with a small, gentle laugh. “He’s been talking about you every day. To just about anyone who will listen. Yes, more than the history of the subway! No, I’m not fibbing!”

After a moment, she lets out a patient sigh, shifting in her seat. “Would you like me to wake him up?”

Satoshi hears Mayaka’s response to that clearly enough: a shrill, embarrassed, “ _No_!”

“All right.” Chitanda laughs, and though it’s as guileless as ever, Satoshi has learned how to spot the mischief in it, the delight she takes sometimes in getting people worked up. Her jocular demeanor falls away, however, when she speaks again.

“He really does love you so much, Mayaka-san,” she murmurs. “I know that’s not really my place to say, but... you are the only one who doubts it.”

There’s a lull again, and Satoshi listens to the steady rumbling of the train, the warm beat of his own heart.

“Of course I do. Of _course_.” Kindly, she whispers, “I’ll tell him the moment he wakes up. Of course. Good-bye, Mayaka-san. See you soon.”

The sound of her flip phone closing reaches Satoshi more clearly than perhaps anything ever has.

Against his will, maybe from nerves or from the loss of Mayaka’s presence, however brief and abstract it had been, he shivers. This, Chitanda notices.

He briefly worries that the jig is up, that she’ll scold him for listening in, but it isn’t; she doesn’t. Instead, after a brief rummaging noise, Satoshi feels a warm object drape over him, which he quickly realizes is Chitanda’s coat.

“Sleep tight, Fukube-san,” she says, with a bit of a humorous edge, like she’s making fun of herself for mothering him.

Satoshi pretends to stir and she doesn’t say another word, but just before he drifts off for real again, he hears her humming an old song, and it carries him off to a simple and beautiful dream.

He had wondered for some time what exactly it had been about Chitanda that had changed Houtarou from the heart out. A wealth of possibilities had come to him, hypotheses and guesses and errant mental notes, but a database can’t draw conclusions, after all.

Maybe they aren’t meant to. Maybe he’s stepping outside of his limits. But, as the early winter sunlight illuminates the train car, he thinks that, for the first time, maybe he's figured out something that Houtarou still hasn't.


End file.
